In noisy environments, headsets having noise attenuating earcups are frequently used to facilitate communication by radio, intercom, etc. For example, aircraft pilots typically utilize headsets of the type having two noise attenuating earcups and a boom-type microphone. Similar headsets, having either one or two earcups, are frequently used in other settings, such as factories, stadiums, broadcast facilities, etc.
The passive noise attenuation capability of such headset earcups is significantly affected by the seal of the earcup noise attenuation ring against the user's head. The quality of that seal, in turn, is dependent on the amount of pressure exerted by the headset against the user's head--a tighter fit yields better attenuation, and a looser fit gives less attenuation. Tighter fitting headsets, however, can often be less comfortable. To balance comfort and noise attenuation effectiveness, most good quality headsets are adjustable to accommodate variations in the head sizes of potential users.
In some cases, once a headset is initially properly adjusted for a particular person no further adjustment of the headset is later required. Hence, many headsets, while being adjustable, are not easily adjusted. For example, some adjustable headsets require a tool of some type (such as a screwdriver, allen wrench, etc.) to make the adjustment. In other situations, however, periodic adjustment of the headset is required. For example, pilots usually own and use their own personal headset, but may find themselves in varying operating conditions. In one situation a pilot may be on a relatively noisy but short flight, and therefore might prefer to have a tight-fitting headset (to maximize noise attenuation). Although such a headset may not be very comfortable for long flights, on short flights the greater noise attenuation achieved by using a tighter headset may be a fair tradeoff against the slightly lower comfort of such a headset. In another situation, however, the same pilot may be on a longer flight in a quieter aircraft. In such a situation, the pilot may prefer the comfort of a looser fitting headset, even if it does not attenuate noise as well as a tighter fitting headset.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide convenient adjustability in the tightness of the fit of a communications headset. Many headsets provide adjustability in the length of the headband which connects the two earcups. Depending on the design, adjusting the length of the headband may incidentally also affect the tightness of the earcups on the user's head. In many cases, however, the headset is designed so that the headband is intended to rest on the top of the use's head, thereby at least partially supporting the weight of the headset. In such headsets, adjustment of the length of the headband therefore affects the alignment of the earcups with the user's ears, and the amount of weight carried by the headband. Accordingly, merely adjusting the length of the headband usually does not provide the desired degree of adjustability in the overall fit, earcup tightness, and comfort of the headset for the various noise environments described above. Some screw-type mechanisms have been utilized to provide adjustment of the degree of headset tightness, but such mechanisms often are found only in more expensive headsets. Moreover, such screw-type adjustment mechanisms often either require tools to make the adjustment (i.e., in order to make the adjustment mechanism inconspicuous), or utilize bulky knurl knobs for easier tool-free adjustment.